What is it I must do?
by hidden stranger
Summary: When King Julian finds he cannot father the egg he has come to know as JJ, he falls deep into a depression. Who can help or who will even be willing to help the lemur king in his time of need? Oneshot Mar/Julian


A/N, Greeting ppl, Thank you for all the reviews on my previous Penguins of Madagascar fic, This one will be again another Julian/Marlene. If you haven't seen the episode called "Paternal Egg stinct" This takes place right after the mother duck has left with her newly hatched lost egg.

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The tense afternoon drew to a close in the New York City Zoo. The Penguins, their temporary gaurdian misson now complete, left to return to their HQ after staying and watching the mother and her children follow in a single file line of obediance. Once out of sight, the troop of four arctic birds left, the lemur king standing alone, his face fell in sadness as realization took hold of him.

Hanging his crowned head, the tall lemur slowly turned to head back to his habitat, looking back with every secound footstep to see if hope was not lost, if his JJ would come running back to him as his chosen father. Sadly his hopes were not granted as he soon found himself at his royal throne, gazing up the rungs of its ladder, he felt for a moment he hadnt the strength to climb up to his royal position as king of the New York Zoo. Dragging himself to the top, each rung feeling as though he became weaker by the moment, he got the top and sat all before finally letting the brunt of the inner ache get to him.

Mort and Maurice saw their king in a slump, sitting atop the throne, his head in his paws, the small drips of falling tears from between the lemur's fingers. He stayed that way deep into the evening, until the darkest hour finally dragged the king's black eyelids down over his soft hurt eyes. The secound in charge lemur studied his friend and king Julian. Could something as small as an egg truly have bothered their king this badly? Something had to be done to fix this, to get things back to normal, while he enjoyed not having to dance into the late hours of the night, he could stand seeing his friend like this. Knowing in the past their attempts to bring Julian upbeat again worked only rarely, Maurice told Mort to stay and watch over Julian as he made plans the next day to find someone who could help him.

In the zoo, when it came to solving a problem, everyone usually headed in the Penguin's direction. They were a key element to bringing order back to the zoo animals. Opening the secret passage door and heading into their HQ he entered the Penguin Lair. Reaching their homestead, he found the group engaged in a rather unorthadox game of checkers, using what appeared to be large bowling pins painted black and red. He waited until a move was made before making himself noticed.

"Ahem." The group turned to him in lightening fast reflexes while assuming defensive stances. Skipper narrowed his eyes

"Lemur, whats your buisness here?" He said in a straight to the point get it over with don't wast my time tone.

"Its king Julian! He's gone completely slump. He really down about that egg." Maurice exclaimed.

Kowalski jumped into the coversation, "But, doesn't he know that the egg would've been an entirely different species anyway?" The lemur aid nodded.

"I told him but he wouldn't acknowledge the truth, even though he saw that baby hatched, he's still sad he can't take it as his own."

Skipper, "The lemur has to learn that he can't just have anything he wants, there ARE limits!" Maurice nodded in agreement

"I know, I know, but please can you help me or not?" The penguins looked over at eachother and formed a huddle. Turning back to the lemur they shook their heads.

"Sorry comprendae, we aren't the ones you really need for this kind of mission. Private thinks Marlene may be of some help to you though." Maurice's eyes shifted as he thought that idea through and then nodded to the peguins, bidding them good day.

As they headed over to the lemur exhibit, Marlene was filled in by Maurice about the current situation as best she could be. He left her to go inside and ordered for Mort to join him in a distant part of the habitat. Marlene walked along the paved cement floor toward the bounce castle where she soon saw a sight she wouldn't forget.

The usually demanding and eternal dancing king lemur looked unlike himself at all. Lying on his side away from her, Julian laid in a slightly curled C shape, his long striped tail laying limply out along the rounds of the castle floor . His crown slightly tilted as his head lay against the cushion of the matress. He looked as though he was asleep, the otter climbed up as stealthily as she could if he was sleeping to not wake him. Getting to the other side of the lemur king, her face fell when she saw the expression that adorned his. He was awake, but he looked soo...beaten...like something had yanked one of his heartstrings out. As his head rested on its side, his eyes only half open, looking down at himself, sorrow and lonesome were some of the words that came to mind as the otter gazed upon him. Reaching out with a paw, she gently stroked the furry side of his face.

"Hey, Julian, I heard about...well I kinda already knew about the egg, my fault but..." Julian raised his eyes to her.

"And what is it you are trying to say otter? I don't feel good, and I don't like it, feeling the feelings of illness are much preferred to this that I am...feeling." He said in a tired voice, dried tears adorened his long and narrow muzzle, his eyes slightly red from what appeared to be alot of crying. Marelene nodded in understanding.

"I know what you mean, I mean I haven't really gone through what you are but..well I think it would help you if you talk about it with me." He looke at her for a sec, his kingly mind's cogs and wheels turning as his mind made itself up. Pulling himself up to a sitting position across from the otter, he placed his hands on his crossed legs, his head still hanging low, as if wishing to not admit there was a view higher than his lap. With a large sigh he began the convesation,

"*sigh* I am not wanting at the moment, anything more than to have my JJ. He was supposed to be mine, I wanted to raise him, teach him to be me, no to be better than I..the king. Now he's gone and I have noone." He exclaimed, his voice crying out in sadness.

"But you've still got Maurice and Mort, they look up to you alot." She said trying to find a way to ease the lemur from his state of personal agony." Julian shook his head, his crown slipping and forcing him to readjust it.

"They are my subjects but their not my blood. I just wanted to have a son or even a daughter, is that soo very wrong of me to ask of this?" He asked the otter before finding tears in his eyes again, forcing himself to pull his knees to his chest and wipe his tears on his forearm. Marlene winced at the crying lemur as she searched for what to say.

"So...you're sad because you don't think that you'll ever get another shot at being a father figure?" Marelene questioned. It seemed odd to her, all the time She'd known this lemur, she'd known him to be rambuchous, selfish, greedy and demanding. Never had she really felt any actual parental instincts from him, he showed very little outside his own ego. It was actually somewhat shocking he was the one telling her this, not anyone else that appeared more...suitable to the job.

The king looked up at Marlene and slumped his shoulders slightly, looking down at his legs and then back up at her again. "It just seemed to me that I would be the one to be looking after and raising the egg to be a perfect lemur king as I." It was Marlene's turn to slump her shoulders, sitting in a moment of silence, the otter and the lemur let their eyes fall onto nothing in particular befor Marlene looked back at him.

"Julian, I know you are having a hard time with this, and I can't give you everything you need to put you back to your old self again but I can tell you this. The first lemur lady who enters this habitat will be happy to have you as her king, to raise her children and take care of them, I hadn't pictured you really as a dad, but I can sort of see it actually. You're already a great leader." Her words were soft spoken and sincere, the lemur before her narrowed his eyes, while he knew what she was trying to saw, he honestly hadn't really wanted a lemur wife, he'd known plently unpon Madagascar and they weren't as you say appealing to the king himself. King Julian looked at her with a curious stare before standing up and motioning her to follow him. She obeyed without hesitation, hoping this little journey would take her to the answers she needed to put Julian back into himself again.

He snuck around the office area, Alice's main room and then signaled her to come over. They scaled up a window sill and part of a building before reaching a rooftop. Marlene looked around as she followed the lemur toward the other sie of the rooftop. He turned to her and said three simple words.

"Close your eyes." She tilted her head in question before handing two black tipped fingers push down her eyelids.

"Ok ok ok!" She said, holding them shut as they waited together for something, she felt the lemur take her paw and lead her forward, She tried not to hesitate but trust the actions of the ringtail. They stood a moment before he sat, putting pressure down on her shoulder as a sign to sit along with him. She complied but curiosity was getting the best of her as she seemed to have waited what felt like an hour or so.

"Julian whats-" He cut her off with a finger to her lips. She then went quiet and waited for him

"Now, open your eyes slowly." She did and was met with an amazing sight. From the area she sat alongside the lemur, the entire zoo became visible, she could see every habitat and office and just she thought she'd seen it all, the sun had just began to set, sending a pink and orange glow over the entire area before the two of them.

"Oh Julian, its so-" He cut her off by easing his arm around her shoulder and pulling her into his side. She went along with the gesture, snuggling her face into his neck an shoulder as they got comfortable.

"Isn't it though?" He said as they sat together and watched as the light drew itself lower an lower until the sun dissapeared. As the very last bits of light left the horizon, Julian turned Marlene's face toward his, staring into her dark brown eyes and throwing caution to the wind, he pulled her in for a soft kiss. Marlene's eyes grew in size as she ease herself into the kiss, letting the world drift away as she was taken in by the embrace of a creature she'd told herself was unbalanced, selfish and a general pain in the ass. Every thought seemed to sift itself out as pleaure took over between the two mammals. Finally breaking apart for a breath of air, Marlene looked up at the lemur who's face adorned a smile once again and who's eyes gleamed in desire down at the otter before him. She returned the expression before pulling him in for another embrace as the darkness fell upon the new york city zoo.

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A/N, Hey hope you enjoyed that, after watching that episode and then listening to Buckethead's Electric Tears, I had to write this, I hope it will read with you the ame it did with me. Take care everyone and feel free to tell me what you thought!


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